Fallout: Republic City
by The Impostor
Summary: 200 years after Korra, the world lies in ruin, long since destroyed by nuclear apocalypse. The current Avatar, Akemi is the world's only hope. Can she restore the world? No longer accepting OCs.
1. The Great War

**A/N: I removed and reposted this because of my error in the description... And I moved it from A:TLA to LOK, because the more I thought about it, the more I realized it's more related to Korra than Aang. This is my fourth OC story, there will be plot, and rules for sending OCs at the end.**

* * *

"Right, right, good work." A woman with impeccably neat long brown hair and green eyes said into a cordless telephone, before hanging up and going out to the factory floor to inspect progress. "How are the earthbombs progressing? The firebombs are already shipped, and it's only going to be so long before the Earth King loses patience."

"Hey, don't get your pantsuit in a bundle, we'll have it out to Ba Sing Se in a few hours..." Laughed the foreman.

"You had better deliver, Avatar Bhudev is not the patient or trusting kind." The woman ordered. "And how am I supposed to profit from this war without both sides being supplied? There's bound to be a loser, after all..."

"Yes, of course, miss Akane Sato." The foreman muttered, as he directed his employees to move more quickly.

"Now, to meet with the Avatar." Decided Akane, as she boarded an airship for Ba Sing Se herself.

* * *

A few days later...

"Now, behold, the Future Industries earthbomb!" Declared Akane, as the trucks entered the palace, with their massive payloads strapped to the beds.

"Excellent, now we can show those firey bastards exactly what it is we're made of!" Laughed a blonde, muscular man in the garb of the Earth Kingdom upper class. This was Bhudev, both Earth King and Avatar, and a foe to all of The Fire Nation. "Tell me though, how exactly do these things work?"

"Well you see, our mining techs discovered a bevy of new materials, we call them radioactive, because they emit light far above the visible spectrum similar to radio waves, and we found out that you can create a massive explosion with just the right mix of some of them. These bombs are designed to take advantage of that; an earthbender can manipulate these materials, and the process begins. They're intended to be thrown out of airships shortly after being activated, and should detonate on the ground." Explained Akane.

"Excellent, death from above, the concept speaks to me..." Laughed Bhudev.

"Well, I believe we have payment to discuss." Interjected Akane, annoyed at Bhudev ignoring her.

"Oh, yes, that's right... I'll take you to the treasury!" Agreed Bhudev, leading the CEO into the palace.

* * *

"Here you are!" The avatar laughed, showing Akane a massive stack of gold and jewels, carried on a sizable cart.

"Excellent, I do appreciate you setting your prejudice aside and working with someone of the United Republic." Thanked Akane.

"Do not assume that it will be a habit, I still have little taste for your kind, I simply honor the family ties between your ancestry and my prior incarnation." Explained Bhudev, suddenly terrified that Korra would once again emerge from his soul to berate him.

"In any event, I have to entertain in a few nights, I shall be seeing you." Muttered Akane, as she vacated the room, and boarded her airship back to Republic City, a smirk on her face; she'd played it all out, no matter what happened, she'd win. She'd already given the firebending version of those bombs to the Fire Lord, and she'd built countless fallout shelters, or "Vaults" as she called them, for humans to take refuge in if either of those idiots got the idea to use them. Life was good.

* * *

**Intro: ****War. War never changes. The Fire Lord Sozin waged war against the airbenders, to bring about what he called "prosperity" His grandson, Ozai tried the same with the Earth Kingdom. Unalaq, chief of the Northern Water Tribe attempted to bring about a total removal of law, in favor of pure chaos.**

**But war never changes.**

**Almost 100 years ago, rising tension between the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation had become essentially a cold war, and espionage reigned supreme. Through this, a shocking discovery was made: both sides had advanced nuclear technology. In a panic, they both let their bombs fly, and the whole world, even the barely involved Water Tribes, and the entirely uninvolved Air Nation, was reduced to ashes in two brief hours. Some survived underground, in the Future Industries vaults. This is a tale of the next avatar, one from Vault 65...**

* * *

"And after the war between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom, most of the world became unlivable, hence the vaults, this is very much the fault of the previous avatar, an earthbender called Bhudev. Bhudev is notable as an avatar because of his malicious nature. Normally avatars are benevolent, but he was able to rebel against that convention as a result of all but one avatar before him's essence being erased. Only one avatar, Avatar Korra, communicated with him, and her influence simply wasn't sufficient. As a result, he became entrenched in Earth Kingdom supremacism, and the war between the two nations became inevitable. It is unknown if Bhudev himself survived, but no word of any other avatars has reached us..." Explained the primary proctor, to Vault 65 high school's history class.

"The next avatar is sitting right here..." Thought Akemi, a bit nervous. Even if she was the avatar, she couldn't reveal it; she knew as well as anyone that there was a strict 'no benders' policy in Vault 65. After the age of 4 or so, any bender was expected to never use their power, or else be expelled from the vault, due to concern over them causing damage. Thankfully, Akemi had never needed to use her bending, and had never even tried to hone it; after the grace period, in which she only bent fire anyway, let no more mention of bending cross her mind for more than a second. Sure, Korra and Bhudev talked to her every once in awhile, and Korra would more often than not encourage her to take action, but that wasn't what Akemi wanted. She was perfectly content to live out her life within vault 65, and avatar or no, she was happy there.

"Class dismissed." Muttered the proctor, as the students vacated their chairs.

"Now to study, I need to make sure the exam places me in a good job..." Muttered Akemi, nervously.

* * *

"Hey there, bitch, how about we have a little bit of fun?" Laughed a fellow vault dweller, his two companions, one male, one female in tow. They called themselves the triple threats; they seemed to be inspired by the street gangs that roamed Republic City back before the war.

"How about I actually amount to something, and you three find some low-level clerical positions to fill." Akemi shot back.

"Nah, I ain't doing any work, shit like this is more fun!" He laughed, as he grabbed the sleeve of Akemi's vault suit, and pulled her to the floor. "Now, stomp 'er!"

The two others complied, and Akemi was bruised and bleeding before long.

"I-I can't die here!" She sobbed to herself, tears populating her green eyes, and her domestic-styled black hair becoming a thick mess. "You won't." Promised Korra. Who promptly drove Akemi into the Avatar State. Suddenly, a burst of fire erupted from her body, sending the gang back. Water was drawn from the air, and swept them against a wall. Finally, the metal of was manipulated into shackles, keeping the triads in their place. "NO!" Akemi shouted as she powered down and observed what she had accomplished.

* * *

"Akemi Hotaru, age 19, fine upstanding citizen of Vault 65. And you, of all people used bending?!" Inquired the Overseer of the vault.

"Yes, I confess to being the avatar as well, it was a past life that triggered the avatar state." Answered Akemi, knowing that there was no way out of this.

"Well, given your confession, I have no option but to expel you from the vault, I am terribly, terribly sorry, but not only are you a security risk, but you are also a pariah in the eyes of our people. gather whatever you wish to bring with you, and I shall meet you at the gate in two hours time.

* * *

"Mom, dad, I'm sorry..." Muttered Akemi, as she began packing a sack slung over her shoulders with anything and everything she may need for the surface.

"We heard, you're the avatar..." Said her mother.

"We still love you, and we wish you could stay." Assured her father.

"I just don't get it! Why the fuck should I have to leave when all I've done is defend myself from three psychos! They should be the ones getting expelled!" Protested Akemi.

"I am truly sorry, Akemi, but that's the system; we may not like it, but we aren't strong enough to fight it directly. The best thing you can do is play by the rules for awhile, and maybe, some day, you can change those rules." Her mother explained, as she produced a small flame in her hand. "You aren't the only bender here, trust me, and soon enough, we can come out of hiding."

"Thanks, to both of you, you've helped me so much over the years; I promise to come back some day." Sobbed Akemi, as she finished packing, and left for the vault's gates.

"Here we are, the door of Vault 65..." Muttered The Overseer. "I hate to do this to you, but there is no other option..." He sighed, as he opened the gate leading out into the wasteland.

* * *

The outside of the vault was terrifying. All around her there was nothing but twisted metal and a few structures Akemi could only assume were buildings before the war. The majority looked inaccessible. But more pressing was the white-haired young woman with red eyes and panda ears clad in a red and white striped tank top and black pants with a blue coat tied around her waist.

"Um, what are you?" Asked Akemi, in shock of the creature.

"FUCK YOU YOU RACIST!" She shouted, visibly angered by Akemi's ignorance.

"But I just came out of a vault! I don't know what the surface is like!" Protested Akemi.

The woman sighed. "I am a halfling. Part human part spirit, the bombs combined a few of us, and now we share one body with two souls. I got tangled up with a forest spirit see, and now, we share this body, I'm the human, and right now, I have a vault to loot, so if you'll excuse me-"

"I can tell the vault's overseer all about your vault looting." Lied Akemi, thinking quickly.

"What!?" Don't tell him!" Shouted the woman, throwing herself at Akemi's feet.

"I promise not to, just teach me about the wasteland, and travel with me until my bending gets good enough, and we'll be good." Agreed Akemi.

"Are you a firebender? I can teach you if so..."

"I'm the avatar." Explained Akemi. I need all the elements.

"Good! We start tomorrow! My name's Char by the way, well it isn't really, it's the name I chose for myself though..."

* * *

**A/N: Alright now, send me your OCs, by review or by PM, and here is what I need:**

**Preface: No real rules, just show me your best, now, here are the OCs I need.**

**-Two bending teachers, earth and water, the earthbender is best a supermutant (the fallout wiki can explain them much better than I can).**

**and then we have the bulk of needed OCs, several for all of the following factions:**

**Dai Li: Earth Kingdom supremacists who wish to restore its former glory (basically The Enclave).**

**The United Republic: A more or less gray organization devoted to restoring the world. Has good intentions, but their opinions of ghouls (again, fallout wiki is your friend), supermutants (who are more sentient in this.), and halflings range from suspicion to outright violence.**

**Republic Broadcasting Corporation: The largest radio station in the world, with affiliates in all known populated areas. Neutral, as their military arm's actions generally consist of what is good for the company.**

**Future Industries: The only major source of new tech in the wasteland, they work tirelessly to restore the world, headed by Hibana Sato, a descendant of the adopted child of Korra and Asami.**

**Cabbage Conglomerates: A union of merchants who often travel in caravans for safety reasons, they are neutral, but sympathetic, as their wares have a nasty habit of being damaged by people on quests...**

**The Church of the Spirits of the Air: Fanatical Airbenders who wish to bring all humanity under their rule. Their vanguard is a millitia of ninja-esque troops who can use airbending to crush victims under pressure, cut off air supply, etc. Also employ ninjato air swords, when applicable.**

**The Disciples of the Lion Turtles: Another religious organization; like Future Industries in that their main objective is to restore the world, but in contrast eschew technology, and believe that the world will only be restored if humanity returns to its roots. The highest ranked members can energybend.**

**The Eternal Ring of Warriors: An equal-opportunity faction of enthusiastic battlers, who run colosseums, there are only two chapters: The Republic Wasteland Chapter, and the New Ba Sing Se Chapter.**

**Couriers: Take a wild guess...**

**The White Lotus: Yep, they're still around...**

**Here is the bio:**

Name:

Age (Preferably 19-40):

Gender:

Sexuality (if bisexual or pansexual, note whether they tend more toward boys or girls):

Nationality

Race (Human, Ghoul, Supermutant, or Halfling):

Bender?:

Weapons (a note about weapons; they are classified as they are in Fallout, with the exception of energy weapons. Energy weapons are replaced with "bending weapons," which of course enhance bending abilities. They can be long range or melee, and work for all benders. (The air sword is a primitive example of this.):

Appearance

Eyes:

Hair:

Height:

Build:

Standard Clothes:

Swim:

Personality:

Likes:

Dislikes:

Past:

Theme Song (Optional):


	2. Purpose

**A/N: To anyone who has created an OC, or is willing to, may I ask something of you? If you are also a fan of Percy Jackson, I have a story for that, and I need at least two Roman demigods before I can even update, so it would be most appreciated if I could receive a few more OCs for that.**

* * *

"So, what's your story?"Asked Akemi, motioning to Char as they both walked down the road, away from the vault. "you know mine as is."

"That isn't just something you ask a halfling!" Shouted Char, continuing to be annoyed by Akemi, but thoroughly unable to leave her, for fear of having another organization on her ass. "We're as old as the wasteland you know, I haven't aged a day since I was 21! And that was 200 years ago, that isn't fun you know! And worse yet, I get taken over by the spirit every once in awhile, you need to be less of a bitch!" She reprimanded.

"Hey! What part of 'I just left a vault' is so unclear to you? I don't know what halflings consider racist! How would I? You're the first one I've ever met, and I didn't even know what a halfling was until two hours ago!" Protested Akemi, offended by Char's quickness to judge.

"Well fine! I'll tell you my oh-so-precious past!" Snarked Char, as she sat down on the rusted, barely recognizable frame of a satomobile.

Flashback: 200 years ago.

"Now, time to fuck some shit up!" Laughed Char, as she and her best friend, the so-called jester donned their trademark masks, Char's a blue demon-looking thing, and her friend that of a jester. "Target: that forest spirit in 3-B!" The duo, armed with bending and Char's patented stink bombs, moved in on the target.

"What the-" Muttered the spirit, as fire erupted into his apartment, and bombs soon followed.

"Eat gas, motherfucker!" Cheered Char, as the both of them emerged in the room, terrifying the spirit.

"What the hell are you damn kids doing?" Fumed the panda. "Here I am, sitting in my damned living room, and I have to contend with your stupid asses! I have a goddamn life you know, and I'd prefer to- He was cut off by a firebomb exploding around half a mile from them.

* * *

"What the hell?" Gasped Char, as she awoke to find herself pinned to the ground, the sky hazy with some strange gas, and the world around her looking quite dead. Upon getting up from the ground, she noticed yet another oddity, her ears were strangely absent from the side of her head, and she felt a strange weight on the top of her head. "Panda ears?" She wondered aloud, as she felt the shape and structure of the growths.

"INDEED! THEY ARE PANDA EARS! WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST GUESS ASSHOLE!?" The forest spirit screamed, from... Inside Char's head?

"What, how did you get in here?" Demanded Char, shocked to hear her victim in her head.

"Fuck if I know, but I ain't about to share a body with the girl who keeps spraying me with her stupid stink bombs!" Shouted the spirit.

"Do you have an idea for how to separate?"

"Fuck my life..." Muttered the spirit.

"Hey, what do we have here?" Wondered Char, noting a vault near her, and going about breaking in via its code lock.

* * *

"For years, I kept trying to get killed, but the spirit DNA wouldn't have it, it turns out that the whole 'immortal' aspect of spirits stays with them if they become halflings... They found out later that you can be killed if a waterbender performs the spirit pacification technique on you, but that only starts the process, if you get killed then, the human dies, and the spirit goes back to normal. I haven't found a waterbender who'll do it just yet though..." Muttered Char, as a beast with red fur, talons, and a fox's head descended from the sky. "This is Taka, he's a fox-falcon, one of the things that used to be all over before the blast; they're rare now, but I managed to find one."

"What does he do?" Asked Akemi, a bit mesmerized by Taka's cuteness.

"He scouts vaults for me, any vault he sees, he takes me back to, I loot whatever's of value." Explained Char, bluntly.

"My god, what have I done?" Thought Akemi. This woman was bad news, no doubt about that; she'd only travel with her for as long as it took to become a respectable firebender...

"You don't mind if I loot vaults that aren't yours, right?" Asked the short-tempered halfling.

* * *

"Alrighty then, time to teach firebending!" Declared Char, as she woke Akemi up, and physically dragged her off the mattress set up in Char's makeshift camp.

"Ugh... Now?" Muttered Akemi.

"You asked!"

"Fine."

"Good, now for basics!" Char began with a simple punch that caused fire to erupt from her hand and fly forward.

"I can do that, I taught myself a little bit in the vault, when I was really small, before I was old enough to be banished for bending." Explained Akemi, as she produced and (admittedly weaker) fire punch herself.

"That makes things easier then." Noted Char. "So, let's move on to more advanced manipulation..."

"Give us everything!" Shouted a man with an equalist helmet a leather jacket, and a shock baton in hand.

"Shit, raiders..." Muttered Char, as the first man, along with another man with improvised metal armor bending earth, and a woman with a patchwork of kevlar bending water, moved in. Char summoned a torrent of fire, taking the latter two down without much trouble. The third, however, proved a different beast.

"Now, the real question is: how stupid is this bitch?" He laughed, as he zapped her with the baton, sending Char to the ground.

"Sorry, but I need her." Asserted Akemi, who had entered the avatar state, and forced the raider captain back with a blast of air, and promptly speared him with a sharp stone spire through the chest.

"You know, I thought after 200 years, you'd be a better firebender!" Laughed Akemi.

"Well I don't fight all that much, mostly I just use fire to intimidate." Explained Char. "And really, raiders, or quadriads as they style themselves, don't attack me much, and I'll move elsewhere if too many do. Besides, I can't die anyway, so if I'm overpowered, I just play dead until they leave, they don't know what halflings can do."

"Well in that case, we may as well continue..." Said Akemi, tired from entering the avatar state.

* * *

"There they are!" Shouted a man in a black ceremonial robe with a green circle spanning a square inside it, and his eyes obscured by an odd, mostly rounded hat. He was flanked by two others in similar dress.

"Shit! Them!" Shouted Char, running away instinctively.

"Hey! I can't use the avatar state again you know!" Protested Akemi, as she was bolted to the ground via shackles of earth.

"Now, miss avatar, we have much to discuss, and a previous incarnation of yours to awaken." The man said, but keeled over immediately after, followed by his two enforcers.

"What?" Muttered Akemi, before fainting from the stress.

* * *

"Wake up." Demanded Korra, as Akemi came face to face with the two other incarnations.

"You can't just sleep forever." Agreed Bhudev.

"What do you two want?" Sobbed Akemi, still pitying herself, and still asking _why_ she, a domestic, calm, and generally unengaging type had to be the world's most important figure.

"Well, we need to discuss something, and given that you triggered the avatar state while your body was inactive, this seemed like a good time." Explained Bhudev.

"Right, because there are only two of us, one of us will end up being a huge influence on you. Which that is will depend on which of us you act more like." Continued Korra. "In addition, because of the desperate nature of the situation, we'll try to let some of our influence bleed through and help you master elements faster. Keep in mind that depending on which of us you chose though, you'll find certain types of bending harder. For me it'll be air."

"And for me, fire." Concluded Bhudev.

"I can't believe you're agreeing..." Noted Akemi.

"It's not going to be a habit, we have very different plans for you, and we both expect you to carry them out; you're bound to make an enemy of one of us." Warned both previous avatars at the same time.

"Now, you have a world to face, and I have a beautiful brunette wating for me in the spirit world, so it's time you get back to reality." Decided Korra, as everything went white.

* * *

"Hey, are you alright? Those bastards looked like they were roughing you up pretty badly..." Noted a young man in a jumpsuit with an obscured logo. He had black hair in a buzz cut, and bright green eyes, and grease around his hands here and there.

"Huh, where am I?" Asked Akemi, noting her drab concrete surroundings, with a computer terminal, desk, radio, and a few posters its only ornamentation.

"You're just outside of Republic City, at Sung Shi's. Best repairs in all of the Republic Wasteland. I'm Sung Shi.

"Where did the other girl go?" Asked Akemi, scared that she may have lost her firebending teacher.

"Well, after I shot those three down, I found her cowering behind a building, and I gave her a quick reminder about loyalty, she's here, asleep." Said Sung Shi. "I still don't know who you are, come to think of it..."

"I am Avatar Akemi." Answered Akemi.

"The avatar? I'm going to need some proof..." Muttered Sung.

"Well..." Akemi muttered as she shot fire from her hand, and, with a herculean effort, managed to shoot air from her palm.

"Hm, it seems you are the avatar, and in that case, I am honored to work with you. What is your intent, miss?"

"Well, I've given it some thought, an I think it's my duty to restore the world, to bring it back to what it once was." Decided Akemi, the influence of Korra breaking through, and resolve populating her voice.

"High minded ideals huh? Well, if that's what you're after, you should talk to Hibana Sato of Future Industries. She's all about that, and she'd be elated to have a powerful person like the avatar on her side."

"Great, where do I find her?" Asked Akemi.

"Well, that's where it gets harder; see, Future Industries is the only producer of new tech in the world right now, and thus would be the target of every criminal from here to New Ba Sing Se, except that they have a building in Republic City sealed off by debris. There are only two ways in. The first is by the underground tunnels that they utilize to sell their tech to approved customers, the entrances to said tunnels are guarded by heavily armed guards, and their locations are given by invitation only, so even if we could find it, we couldn't get in. The other is by air, fly an airship onto their grounds, which also can't be done, because they have a deal with the Republic Broadcasting Corporation. A radio broadcasting company that may well be a nation in and of itself. The RBC's private militia provides air support. All in all, the only thing we can do is go to their HQ to the north of here, and try to convince them to let us borrow one of their airships.

"Sounds like a plan!" Laughed Akemi, suddenly becoming a bit excited over the prospect.

"What's the plan?" Asked Char, groggily.

"Well, It seems we'll be traveling with Sung here for awhile, at least until we get to Republic Broadcasting Corporation's headquaters." Announced Akemi.

"Fine..." Muttered Char, a bit annoyed but willing to go with it.

"First, we need to prepare though, I'll need-" *WHOMP* A stone struck the side of the building.

"Shit..." Muttered Sung, as he looked out the second story window, to see a mass of soldiers, most clad in black metal armor with the same green logo as the thugs from earlier, some clutching guns, and others preparing masses of earth. "It's the Dai Li."

* * *

**A/N: I need OCs for this fic too, of course, and if you already made one, you can make more! Here are the factions once again:**

**Dai Li: Earth Kingdom supremacists who wish to restore its former glory (basically The Enclave).**

**The United Republic: A more or less gray organization devoted to restoring the world. Has good intentions, but their opinions of ghouls (again, fallout wiki is your friend), supermutants (who are more sentient in this.), and halflings range from suspicion to outright violence.**

**Republic Broadcasting Corporation: The largest radio station in the world, with affiliates in all known populated areas. Neutral, as their military arm's actions generally consist of what is good for the company.**

**Future Industries: The only major source of new tech in the wasteland, they work tirelessly to restore the world, headed by Hibana Sato, a descendant of the adopted child of Korra and Asami.**

**Cabbage Conglomerates: A union of merchants who often travel in caravans for safety reasons, they are neutral, but sympathetic, as their wares have a nasty habit of being damaged by people on quests...**

**The Church of the Spirits of the Air: Fanatical Airbenders who wish to bring all humanity under their rule. Their vanguard is a millitia of ninja-esque troops who can use airbending to crush victims under pressure, cut off air supply, etc. Also employ ninjato air swords, when applicable.**

**The Disciples of the Lion Turtles: Another religious organization; like Future Industries in that their main objective is to restore the world, but in contrast eschew technology, and believe that the world will only be restored if humanity returns to its roots. The highest ranked members can energybend.**

**The Eternal Ring of Warriors: An equal-opportunity faction of enthusiastic battlers, who run colosseums, there are only two chapters: The Republic Wasteland Chapter, and the New Ba Sing Se Chapter.**

**Couriers: Take a wild guess...**

**The White Lotus: Yep, they're still around...**

**Here is the bio:**

Name:

Age (Preferably 19-40):

Gender:

Sexuality (if bisexual or pansexual, note whether they tend more toward boys or girls):

Nationality

Race (Human, Ghoul, Supermutant, or Halfling):

Bender?:

Weapons (a note about weapons; they are classified as they are in Fallout, with the exception of energy weapons. Energy weapons are replaced with "bending weapons," which of course enhance bending abilities. They can be long range or melee, and work for all benders. (The air sword is a primitive example of this.):

Appearance

Eyes:

Hair:

Height:

Build:

Standard Clothes:

Swim:

Personality:

Likes:

Dislikes:

Past:

Theme Song (Optional):


	3. The United Republic

**A/N: Well, fortunately, despite my inability to post during my hiatus, at least I found time to write, so enjoy! (Also, I hope this makes up for my absence…)**

"Um, what's the Dai Li?" Asked Akemi, scared of the spectacle before her.

"Should you take this one or should I?" Sung asked Char, a bit confused Akemi's unawareness; were the vaults really that isolated?

"I'll say it, the Dai Li are a bunch of pretentious assholes who want the so-called Earth Kingdom to rule the wastes, they kick the shit out of anyone who stands in their way. They probably want you to awaken Bhudev." Explained Char, with a scowl on her face. "They were the ones Sung saved you from."

"Or didn't, they know where I am now; no good deed goes unpunished, I suppose…" Muttered Sung.

"Can we still make it out?" Demanded Akemi, having no confidence in her ability to fight an entire army.

"Well, there are two options…" Decided the mechanic, I can try to snipe 'em off with my scoped .44, but I don't recommend that. There are no guarantees that I can get any good hits in at this distance, plus, bullets don't work too well against power armor. A better plan would be to sneak out, we can get out through a bunker under the building, and get a decent way out, we can move a lot more easily that way, and the Dai Li will be easier to avoid."

"Good, let's do that." Agreed Akemi, running, and for the first time noticing the metal plates and such Sung had installed on her vault suit. "Armor modifications?" Asked Akemi.

"Yeah, I figured some ordinary cloth wouldn't last you long in the wasteland, so I did what I could." Explained Sung, as he ran into an adjacent room, only to return a minute later, equipped with a lightly armored faded red jacket and jeans with light armor modification, as well as his pistol and a sword tied to his belt. "I'm ready now, let's move.

* * *

"What was this place?" Asked Char, marveling at the faded luxury of the halls; tapestry and expensive goods positively dotted it, and what she saw of the rooms off to the side managed to be even more opulent.

"This was a vault before the war, the richest citizens were the ones in here. Sooner or later, they left. When I got here, it was cleared out; I figured it'd be a good escape route for situations like this, and so I repurposed it, I sell shit from down here if I need caps, and here we are escaping." Explained Sung.

"Clever." Conceded Akemi. "But why would you, a basically neutral mechanic, need a quick escape?"

"You've seen me with a gun, do you honestly think a man with skills like that would have no reason to use them? I have plenty of enemies, such as the ones we are currently running from." Responded Sung.

"Fair enough, let's just focus on the matter at hand." Decided Akemi, making her way to the other side of the vault.

"A two-sided vault?" Asked Akemi, confused over the concept.

"I made this hole." Admitted Sung.

"How?"

"Many years of hard work." Retorted Sung, as he opened the door he'd placed over the hole.

"Call off the attack on the garage, they're right here." A serious-looking man with blue eyes and blonde hair in a military cut, dressed in prewar officer robes spoke into the radio earpiece on his head.

"Well fuck…" Muttered Sung, as he drew an electrified sword.

"Now now, I don't enjoy such violence." The man muttered. "How about we try to come to an agreement. You give up the avatar, so that we can awaken our dear leader, and I'll be willing to look the other way over your history with the Dai Li, as for your other friend… I'll see about her."

"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Shouted Char, as she brought the flames to her hands.

"I'm with Char, We'll protect the avatar to the death! You won't get us without a fight, Crojane." Agreed Sung.

"Very well, I fear I have no other choice." Crojane turned on his radio again. "All Dai Li forces, converge on my location, kill the man, capture the Halfling and find a waterbender, the avatar is mine."

"No way in hell!" Shouted Sung, as he sprung forward, and swung his sword, which crackled with electrical energy. The sword gashed Crojane's torso, but it was already clear that the wound wouldn't be fatal.

"My subordinates never reach my level…" Muttered Crojane as he tried to bend a high pressure blast of air at Sung, but without response, thanks to the shock recently sent through him. Just then, his subordinates made their way to his position. "Open fire!" Crojane declared. No response. "Open fire…" Sighed Crojane getting impatient.

"Sir, the United Republic!" One of the power armored soldiers who had come in shouted, as another battalion of soldiers emerged from recently landed airships, and descended upon the Dai Li regiment.

"Stand down, by orders of the republic!" Declared a woman with green eyes, short brown hair , and wearing a black tank top, black jeans, black boots, and a black mask over the bottom half of her face, with a sniper rifle slung across her back. She was accompanied by another female commander with green eyes, and hair a similar shade to the first, though hers was long and tied in a ponytail. She wore a black tank top and short shorts, with two holsters, one holding a pistol, the other a knife.

"Damn; RETREAT!" Ordered Crojane, who promptly turned tail and ran off with his soldiers.

"Not so fast!" Shouted the masked commander, as she pulled out the sniper rifle and loaded a pebble from a pouch on her belt into it. The pebble shot from the gun with incredible speed, and curved around, and would have easily hit the Dai Li commander had he not bent the air around him to deflect the bullet, and escaped.

"Damn…" Muttered the second commander, with a sigh. "Almost had that bastard, and may I ask what the hell he wanted with you three?"

"I'm the Avatar." Confessed Akemi.

"Well then, the United Republic would be glad to have you, my name's Avani Bei Fong, and that's Kim Lee." The first commander said.

"Sorry, I'm going to Future Industries…" Muttered Akemi.

"What? You can't do that, they ain't shit!" Declared Avani.

"Now Avani, put your personal feelings aside for a second, she is a sentient being, and thus deserves freedom of choice!" Countered Kim.

"Save your bleeding heart, just because you treat shufflers, frankensteins, and half-breeds as real people doesn't mean I have to, and the avatar is no exception, she is property of the prosperous world, and I must take her as a method of our restoration." Groaned Avani.

"What the fuck did you just call me?!" Demanded Char, shocked at Avani's comments.

"Excuse my friend, we will discuss this later." Sighed Kim, as she dragged Avani back to the airship. "Wait, miss Avatar, do you need a waterbending teacher?"

"Yes, I only have a firebending teacher right now." Answered Akemi, hardly believing her luck.

"Good, Avani, send my resignation to headquarters, I'm going on a quest!"

* * *

"So wait, why was that so offensive? What Avani said, I mean." Asked Akemi, still confused over wasteland customs.

"Oh nothing, I just really hate Avani…" Kim muttered, sarcastically.

"All of those terms she used are racial slurs, 'shuffler' is a term for ghouls, humans exposed to heavy radiation and taking on the appearance of the zombies from old movers, 'frankenstein' is a term for supermutants, powerful beings created when humans are exposed to a disease called the forced evolutionary virus, and 'half-breed' is of course, a term for Halfling. All three are incredibly offensive, and using one is a good way to get your ass kicked by a very angry ghoul, supermutant, or Halfling, depending." Explained Sung.

"How do you not know that, Akemi?" Asked Kim.

"I was born in a vault, and I've only been out of it for a little less than a week." Explained Akemi, somewhat ashamed.

"Well, I suppose that's a valid reason…" Decided Kim. "So, how's a vault?"

"Well-" Began Akemi, before she was cut off by a figure in a jester costume literally jumping between them.

"Who the hell are you?" Asked Akemi, offput by the sudden entrance.

"Behold! I am the Jester! The greatest warrior of the wastes, and I challenge you, Avatar, to a battle!" The figure declared.

"Wha- what are you doing with her costume?" Demanded Char, tears welling up in her eyes.

"What are you talking about? I found this in the Republic Wasteland, nobody'd worn it before the war!" Countered the Jester.

"Stop it, now!" Declared an annoyed Akemi, who sprang at him with a fist of fire.

"Too slow!" Laughed the Jester, as he dodged it, and hit pressure points on Akemi's arm, which cancelled her bending out. "Chi blocking motherfucker!" He laughed.

"Damn it." Muttered Akemi, as she simply switched arms, and got a good hit on her opponent with a fireball, followed up immediately by a flame kick.

"Well, the avatar is a strong one." Noted the Jester, as he sprang onto his feet, and rushed in, and tried for another chi block, but was stopped by a fiery breath from Akemi.

"This is over." Declared Akemi, as she punched him with fire from her now-restored arm, and sent him flying into a small caravan somewhat near them.

"Well fuck…" The Jester muttered as he ran off.

"Well, you seem to have improved in fire bending." Said Char, a bit proud of her instruction.

"Part of it comes from Korra, my past lives are trying to influence me, and learning bending styles faster is one of the rewards I'll get, Korra is the one I'm working with right now." Explained Akemi.

"Well, on a related note, that jester character wasn't particularly strong, his chi blocking form was very poor; most likely that was why you recovered so quickly." Noted Sung.

"Guess I'd better keep training, then." Resolved Akemi.

Just then, a gray haired man dressed in simple wastelander robes ran up to them, an angry look on his face. "You destroyed my cabbages!" He shouted, indignantly.


	4. Cabbage Conglomerates' Enforcer

**A/N: This is here! I finally updated it! Enjoy!**

* * *

"Your... Cabbages?" Asked Akemi, confused.

"YES! YOU HAVE MADE AN ENEMY OF CABBAGE CONGLOMERATES!" Declared the merchant.

"Who?" Asked Akemi, frankly terrified by the spectacle before her.

"Cabbage conglomerates are a collective of merchants who band together for safety reasons. Generally, the other major factions- The United Republic, Republic Broadcasting Corporation, The Dai Li, The Church of the Spirits of the Air, Future Industries, and The Disciples of the Lion-Turtles- don't bother them, because they have such a strong hold on the Republic Wasteland's merchants. It's a bit shit that we're now their enemies..." Observed Kim.

"It is indeed, see if any of my brothers and sisters ever serve you again, miss." The merchant declared, as he left in a huff.

"Stupid Jester..." Sighed Akemi.

* * *

"You know, if Akemi is vilified with Cabbage Conglomerates, we may want to abandon her, she isn't much help if we can't buy anything from the largest faction of merchants in the wastes..." Noted Char.

"Char, how do you justify saying such a thing!?" Exclaimed Sung. "We are here to aid the Avatar in restoring the world! If we succeed, Cabbage Conglomerates won't be a consideration."

"Future Industries has a few merchants too, and with better wares." Agreed Kim.

"Emphasis on a few; if you two want to starve because no one will sell to you, be my guests." Sighed Char as she split off from the group.

"You don't need to eat, and you won't be able to die unless a waterbender holds you in place for a full minute." Sung pointed out, a bit bewildered by Char's scatterbrained tirade.

"Oh... right." Sighed Char, as she rejoined the group.

"In any event, let's keep moving." Sighed Sung, as they picked up the pace.

* * *

"Here she is... This is about what she looks like." Explained the merchant, as he produced a rudimentary but reasonably accurate drawing of Akemi.

"A mere vandal? Are you sure about using deadly force?" Asked the enforcer, an athletic young woman with brown hair and green eyes, wearing the combat garb of an unarmored United Republic Commander.

"Yes, miss Hunter, I lost my livelihood here! The good of the alliance hangs on it!" He declared.

"It was clearly an accident, and you'll be able to recover, I'm sorry, but I'll just let her off with a warning." Decided Hunter.

"But my CABBBAGES!"

"I'm sorry, but we can't just go around killing everyone who causes minor damage to our business." Sighed Hunter, as she embarked on her oversized mole, who had traced Akemi's scent thanks to a bit of The Avatar's hair.

* * *

"Where are we going then?" Asked Akemi, pointing the question at Kim, who was leading the group northwards.

"A small settlement not far from here, called Spirit's Reach, at the edge of the spirit wilds that occupied Republic City before the war." Explained Kim. "Humans are the majority, ironically, but a few halflings make their residence there."

"I've been there, did some time there." Said Char.

"Why am I not surprised..." Sighed Sung.

* * *

Spirit's Reach was nestled in the charred remains of a grouping of vines, with some jury rigged buildings nestled inside occasionally exposed in holes within the vines, and a sizable hole serving as the city's gate.

"Any reason for the vines?" Asked Akemi, confused at the city's placement

"They're very difficult to penetrate; any attempt to destroy them is met with their regrowth stronger than before, the dead color is mostly due to the radiation. See the city was founded by refugees from Toma, a city that was destroyed by the Dai Li about 10 years ago, so they were focused on keeping the denizens safe." Explained Kim.

"Well let's find the local inn." Decided Sung, with an uncharacteristic nervousness in his voice.

* * *

"Spirit's Reach, huh?" Hunter noted, as her steed took a sharp turn toward the ruins of Republic City proper, and in particular, toward the once proud spirit wilds. I'll find you, miss."

* * *

"Well, it may be a bit small, but at least we're safe." Sung sighed, seemingly relieved at the solitude he now had.

"So, how do all these factions fit together?" Asked Akemi, her curiousity now piqued as she wasn't running from one threat or another.

"I'll take this one, the United Forces are probably most up to date on things." Said Kim. "The Dai Li was formed by your previous incarnation after the war, he was Earth King, you see, so his former army united with him, and thus he dominated a sizable stretch of what was formerly the Earth Kingdom. Currently, the faction is presided over by Earth King Kun Qiang, who claims to be the Dark Avatar; the truth of this statement is unknown. The Dai Li is currently at war with the United Republic, which is simply an extension of the old world government of the same name, they have a similar goal in that they seek to bring order to the wastes, unfortunately, both of them are a bit harsh on the non human beings of The Wasteland. I joined the United Republic as a sort of lesser of evils. The war has no clear winner just yet. The Republic Broadcasting Corporation is a radio broadcast group that provides entertainment to most of the Republic Wasteland. Their military rivals even The United Forces and Dai Li, but they aren't interested in conquering anything, they just protect company interests. Their gear is primarily sourced in Future Industries, the sole purveyors of new technology in the wasteland. They're very selective about who they give their tech to, and their merchants only sell things the higher ups have cleared as being a low threat if it falls into the wrong hands. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have The Disciples of the Lion Turtles, a group that teaches that all technology is evil, and that humanity must abandon it in order to bring the world to its old state. Finally there's The Church of the Spirits of the Air, a malicious faction of airbenders that twist their culture's lore to justify the destruction of governments and order; they seem to be heavily inspired by the teachings of an old world airbending master called Zaheer. Cabbage Conglomerates trades with them all."

"That's a lot to stomach..." Noted Akemi, nervous over the various enemies she could easily acquire.

"You'll get used to it!" Laughed Char.

"There you are!" Shouted Hunter, as she broke through the inn's metal wall via bending a blade of water.

"Um, who might you be?" Asked Sung, confused at the figure standing before them.

"You!" Shouted Hunter, looking at Sung, as she drew water from the air, and, attempted to decapitate him.

"Now I know..." Gasped Sung, as he stared into the enforcer's eyes, and saw who she was.

Flashback: 10 years ago.

"Commander Crojane made his intent clear, we must decimate the city..." Sung Sighed, his horror clear on his face; was this what order in the wasteland looked like? He couldn't believe it, three years in the Dai Li, and it all seemed to be for the greater good, and here he was, on the verge of destroying an entire city. "I have to do this, we can't let them survive, the order that The Dai Li will bring about cannot have an egregious pocket of rebellion!" Sung Declared. "Mobilize!"

* * *

Toma was burning.

Sung knew what that implied, but in no way was he prepared for the fact of the matter. Everyone was either killing or dying. People were running desperately, like mere animals being hunted. Yet they were not, these were _people. _Trying to ignore the carnage around him, Sung picked up his radio and contacted Crojane. "Mission success." He said, fighting back tears at the horror.

"Mister! Why did you kill mommy and daddy?!" Cried a young brunette, pointing an accusing finger at Sung.

* * *

End Flashback.

"I am that man." Conceded Sung, as he fell to his knees in front of Hunter. "I submit to you, do what you may."

* * *

**A/N: Sung was in The Dai Li!? And he did what!? Stay tuned, and all will be revealed!**


End file.
